Healthy snacks that help with quitting smoking?

I used to hang out at the about.com smoking cessation forums, and one thing they really drove home for me was this: a craving usually lasts just a few minutes, and it passes whether you smoke or not. If you smoke, though, you've just guaranteed you'll have another, stronger craving soon and you've just put yourself right back to square one. I used to view every craving I rode out (ice water helped me immensely with cravings) as a victory, because that meant I was one step closer to being done, one craving farther away from being a smoker. It always helped, made me feel in control and like a winner.

Another thing that helped? A quit meter. Silk Quit makes a good one for free download. Every morning I'd get up and look at that thing on my computer screen, see how many cigarettes I hadn't smoked, see how much money I hadn't put torch to, and it helped a lot--very reinforcing.

Good luck--you can do it!


Kris

I used to hang out at the about.com smoking cessation forums, and one thing they really drove home for me was this: a craving usually lasts just a few minutes, and it passes whether you smoke or not. If you smoke, though, you've just guaranteed you'll have another, stronger craving soon and you've just put yourself right back to square one. I used to view every craving I rode out (ice water helped me immensely with cravings) as a victory, because that meant I was one step closer to being done, one craving farther away from being a smoker. It always helped, made me feel in control and like a winner.

Another thing that helped? A quit meter. Silk Quit makes a good one for free download. Every morning I'd get up and look at that thing on my computer screen, see how many cigarettes I hadn't smoked, see how much money I hadn't put torch to, and it helped a lot--very reinforcing.

Good luck--you can do it!


Kris

I'm on day 3 now of not smoking. So far I'm coping. Been sucking on candy canes since they are the only hard candy we have in the house I'm living in right now, chewing on gum and doing anything else I can think of to occupy my mind when cravings hit. The problem is that they seem to be getting stronger with each one that hits. I know I am strong enough to get past this.....at least I know that now.....there was a time when I didn't realize how strong I am because I had forgotten. I do have an E-Cig but I'm really trying to get away from smoking completely so I don't want to break down and use it. Now I'm getting to the stage where some of the cravings are so strong I start shaking badly......I knew it was going to be hard to quit I just didn't think it would be this hard. I guess I should have expected it with how much stress I'm under and stress being my main trigger for smoking...........

The problem with cravings is that they reverberate in our minds if we give them even the smallest chance. When a craving hits, find something to do. I cleaned the house thoroughly to get rid of the smoke smell, cleaned out the car for the same reason. I scrubbed walls, shampooed carpets, etc., creating a "no smoking ever" zone that was really reinforcing. I took up hobbies that I'd never done while smoking--needlepoint was one. I knocked back big swigs of ice water every time a craving hit. And I remembered, ever time, that this is only for a few minutes, and even if it seems intense, *I* am the boss of me, not some stupid craving that's going to pass.

The thing about stress is that it's always there. Always. And it will never bee a "good" time to quit because there's never a stretch where there isn't a lot of stress. And the funny thing is, smoking, which so many of us did to "relieve" stress, often causes or contributes the very stress it seems to be relieving. But I have faith in you because this is something you want. And you're stronger than cravings, every one of those cravings you ride through is a victory and a step closer to a life without cravings and without tobacco.

Just keep hanging in and doing what you're doing. If you haven't gotten a quit meter, do. If you haven't checked out about.com's smoking cessation forum, do.

Kris